It's a tradition like no other: golfers in various tournaments that don't take place in North America or Europe being asked to partake in strange pre-tournament ceremonies showcasing the locale's culture. Like this, from Shanghai:
Phil Mickelson and Rory McIlroy are twirling golf clubs over their head in Abu Dhabi
Apparently twirling your golf club over your head is all the rage at Dubai dance parties.
Scott Halleran
Photo credit: Andrew Redington / Getty Images
Now, the golf world is focused on the UAE, for the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship. And the pre-tournament ceremony did not disappoint: (we saw this first at For The Win)
Phil Mickelson and Rory McIlroy are standing on stage, tossing and twirling golf clubs, listening to some dance-y sometimes-in-Arabic, sometimes-in-English music, while ladies in robes twirl their hair in rhythm and unidentified men in Arab dress join Mickelson and McIlroy in golf club twirling. Some dudes have drums on stage, but they’re not drumming loudly enough for anybody to hear them over the loud dance-y music.
Why this has to take place, we’re not clear. It seems kind of offensive to attempt to capture any culture by having an event that features Mickelson awkwardly swaying and smiling. But as long as these events feel the need to bring us images of Mickelson awkwardly swaying and smiling, we’re glad to post them on the Internet.
